Dirk Nowitzki Takes Subtle Jab at Lakers After Game 2 Loss

The Los Angeles Lakers suffered another loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 2, falling with a 125-107 final score at the Paycom Center.

The Lakers were obviously very frustrated by the officiating that took place in Game 2. In fact, led by Austin Reaves, the team gathered at center court to confront the referees with a lengthy and heated discussion.

While speaking to reporters after the game, JJ Redick publicly expressed his displeasure with Thursday night’s officiating crew.

“I sarcastically said the other day, they’re the most disruptive team without fouling,” Redick said, via ESPN. “I mean, they have a few guys that foul on every possession. … They’re hard enough to play. They’re hard enough to play, you’ve got to be able to just call them if they foul, and they do foul.”

NBA on Prime Video analyst Dirk Nowitzki took a subtle jab at the Lakers in response to these comments.

“The Lakers are usually the team that always wins the free-throw battle. This is a little new to them that they’re getting clobbered a lot,” Nowitzki said.

More Basketball:Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Explains Flagrant Foul on Austin Reaves

The Lakers were called for 26 personal fouls compared to the Thunder’s 21. OKC took 26 free throws to Los Angeles’ 21.

Redick was particularly frustrated by the officials’ treatment of his star player, LeBron James.

“LeBron has the worst whistle of any star player I’ve ever seen,” Redick said. “I mean, I’ve been with him two years now. The smaller guys, because they can be theatric, they typically draw more fouls, and the bigger players that are built like LeBron, it’s hard for them. He gets clobbered. He got clobbered again tonight a bunch.”

More Basketball:Donovan Mitchell Puts NBA Playoff ‘Pressure' Into Perspective

Game 3 will tipoff at 8:30 p.m. ET on Saturday.

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This story was originally published May 8, 2026 at 10:49 AM.